TOP TEN WAREHOUSE AND DOCK SAFEGUARDS
 
10  Ensure that wheel chocks, or better yet Doc-Loks or wheel locks are used
    on every vehicle at your dock. (It's your responsibility-not the truck drivers)
  9  Protect pedestrians traveling through the facility by ensuring that operators
   of powered industrial trucks are trained to yield the right of way.
   Mark the floors with yellow tape or paint to identify walkway barriers,
   doorways, parking isles, and overhead obstacles.
   8   Protect people traveling through your facility from sharp corners. Place
    padding or guards around sharp corners.
  7  Put an inspection program in place to review palletized materials. if pallets
   are defective, the product should be moved to a safe pallet.
   6  Review warehouse ergonomics. Adjust the height of conveyors to eliminate
    lower back stress. Place heavier products at knee to chest high levels.
    Limit the amount of weight a worker must carry and allow for assisted
    lifting from other workers.
   5   Install guards on conveyor sprockets, gears, and rollers. All pinch points
    must be protected. Install conveyor or emergency step buttons. Install
   crossovers to discourage employees going under conveyors.
   4  Place perimeter guards or reinforced metal; around or over the openings
   of skylights to prevent falls.
   3  Use plastic or metal banding to secure product to pallets for transportation
   or storage. Shrink-wrap loose product for transport or storage. It is very
   important to secure small items that might fall through an overhead
   guard of a lift truck.
   2  Where low hanging electrical equipment, gas pipes, or sprinkler lines can be
   struck by product or equipment, guards or protective sleeves should be
   used to prevent damage.
   1  Both supervisors and employees should play key roles in monitoring the
   on-going safe operation of warehouse and dock equipment and monitor
   for incidents or work place changes.
Does Your Company Need Safety Training?
Click here for our online Training Information Request


A recent study from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has shown the need to target safety training for younger workers. Inexperience and poor judgment skills place younger workers at risk for injury in the warehouse and the shop floor. If your training budget is limited, target the younger worker and then pair them up with more experienced workers.

We can expect someone to die in a forklift mishap within the next six months in Colorado. Make sure your operators are not "the one"! Be sure to see our information on forklift operator training.


For more information, we provide these additional links
as a courtesy for your safety planning:

CDC.gov - Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

MMWR - The Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.
A weekly publication of CDC containing data and reports on specific health and safety topics.
Tell A Friend About Materials Handling Equipment Company

Materials Handling Equipment Company, Inc. Copyright & Ownership Webmaster